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June 20, 2016

What to Expect in the Classroom of Tomorrow

By Susan J. Campbell, TMCnet Contributing Editor

The year was 1980 and I was introduced to the elementary school classroom. The tools available to us included desks, a green chalkboard, writing tablets – and by that I mean lined paper – and right-sized school supplies. There were no computers, the building was pretty old and technology was a word I didn’t even know.



Despite these shortcomings of the not-so-modern classroom at that time, I managed to evolve into a productive member of society with a college degree and earning potential. Still, this traditional classroom doesn’t bode well for all learning styles. And while the public school system in the United States is a little slow to adopt new ways of learning, the potential in the modern classroom is significant.

Hope Education in the U.K. has built their vision of the modern classroom, giving us insights into what could be in terms of education. Right now, the modern technologies that impact our daily lives are barely evident in the classroom. There’s potential to use modern technology to influence the way students learn and how teachers teach.

We already know there’s potential for the use of the cloud in the classroom. Some schools have already jumped on board with the wireless network concept and use it to collect and grade student work and even promote e-lessons. Tomorrow, students and parents may have access to teaching staff and resources through tablets and smartphones. If the system used is open source, the school has the potential to save considerable dollars in licensing costs and modify their solutions to meet their needs.

The interactive wall can help to improve and enhance traditional teaching methods. The traditional white board will be replaced with a full interactive wall to keep students engaged. This type of active learning is a strong way for young children to begin to develop the vital skills and knowledge necessary to encourage a positive and proactive attitude towards learning. The perfect integration tool to use with the wall is the tablet, enabling students to engaged in a way that is completely personalized to their needs.

3D printing will introduce a new form of freedom into the classroom. When used for both vocational and academic purposes, students have the potential and the freedom necessary to create prototypes of their work, seeing their creativity come to life. Teachers will be able to use the technology to help make learning more fun. Plus, students are more likely to pay attention to detail and recognize whether or not their ideas can be achieved.

The classroom of the future also has the potential to also be sustainable, providing the right environment for capturing solar energy through specialty windows, leverage reusable energy sources stored in batteries. The potential is significant. Check out Hope Education’s vision HERE for an interactive glimpse in what could be the classroom of tomorrow.




Edited by Stefania Viscusi
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